Jill Abramson to teach nonfiction class at Harvard

The 1976 Harvard graduate will teach narrative writing to undergraduates.

Jill Abramson, the former executive editor if The New York Times will teach nonfiction classes at Harvard University.

Jill Abramson, who was ousted last month as the top editor of The New York Times, will teach nonfiction classes at Harvard University this year.

Ms. Abramson will teach narrative writing to undergraduates in both semesters of the 2014-2015 academic year, the university said in a statement Thursday. The 1976 Harvard graduate has a tattoo of the school's logo.

Ms. Abramson, the first woman to run The Times as executive editor in its 162-year history, was abruptly dismissed on May 14 following a fraught relationship with Chairman Arthur Sulzberger. The firing set off a debate about whether gender played a role in Ms. Abramson's ouster, an assertion Mr. Sulzberger denied, saying he replaced her after deciding "she had lost the support of her masthead colleagues and could not win it back."

"I'm honored and excited to be teaching at Harvard in the coming academic year," Ms. Abramson, 60, said Thursday in Harvard's statement. "Narrative non-fiction journalism is more important than ever. Its traditions and how it is changing in the digital transition are fascinating areas of study."

Ms. Abramson had been at The Times as a reporter and editor since 1997. Before that, she had worked at The Wall Street Journal, Legal Times, American Lawyer, NBC News and Time magazine.